April 25, 2021

 Good afternoon-

I hope you all had a restful vacation. We look forward to welcoming students back tomorrow. I continue to request that you follow expectations around travel and remind your students of our building based expectations. Thank you to all of those who completed the travel form!

When you arrive tomorrow you will see a lot of work has been done on our new AHS sign. We are so grateful to the town, our Student Council, and the Class of 2020 for providing the funding to make this long planned for project a reality!

Arrival:

Please ask your student to have their mask on when exiting the car or arriving on campus. Students who arrive before 8:20am should wait outside in a socially distant manner. Students exiting cars should also take personal responsibility to maintain distance from those around them. 

Students must be in their classrooms for the start of the school day at 8:35am. The AHS tardy policy is now in effect and students may face consequences (detention, loss of parking privileges, etc.) for arriving late to school. 

Dismissal:

Thank you to all who have been cooperative with our new dismissal procedures. Our staggered dismissal time is scheduled from 2:35-2:55. Parents are asked to follow traffic directions, staying to the right of the road and weaving through the faculty parking lot, to allow the buses to safely enter the drive. 

Technology:

Remind your student to continue to bring their Chromebook and charger each day!

Pool testing will continue for all registered students on Tuesday mornings. Please remind your student that if they are registered it is a weekly test and they are welcome to come to the Distance Learning Lab (next to the nurse's office) as soon as they arrive. We will have more information about student athlete participation in the next few days and anticipate any other students participating in in-person extracurricular activities will also be required to test. 

Dear Parent/Guardian of the Class of 2023, 

As a reminder, this week we will administer the SOS Signs of Suicide program with all members of the sophomore class. The program teaches students about this difficult topic and encourages them to seek help.

SOS has been used by thousands of schools over the past few decades and this will be our 5th year administering the program. AHS students will participate in the education and screening during on April 27 & 28, 2021. Studies have shown that it effectively teaches students about depression and suicide while reducing the number of students’ self-reported suicide attempts. 

We encourage you to visit www.sossignsofsuicide.org/parent for information on warning signs for youth suicide, useful resources, and some of the key messages students will learn.

If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s participation in this program please contact me or any of our school counselors. If you choose to op your child out of the screening process please complete this form by the end of the day Monday, April 26. 

April 16, 2021

Good afternoon-

As the first week of in-person learning comes to a close I am sure your student(s) are exhausted. It is nice be able to head into break. Thank you to the students and families who continue to be vigilant around COVID protocols and support our need to wear masks, socially distance, etc. I know the COVID fatigue many are feeling but we need to continue with these safety measures in order to keep our entire community safe. 

Transitions seem to be the challenging times at AHS. Teachers and students have shared positive reports about being back in the classroom. Students are more vocal and engaged then they have been in a year. We will continue with frequent reminders of expectations and will be looking to make some ongoing adjustments after the break. 

Report Cards: 

Grades are now posted in iStudent/iParent. If you have a question or there is an inaccurate grade please reach out to your teacher. Because of how we run averages Final grades are showing for each class. (Classes that meet Terms 2 & 4 will have the final grade recalculated in June and currently reflect simply the Term 2 grade.)

MCAS schedule:

Testing dates for MCAS will be announced after break. Currently the Classes of 2022 and 2023 are scheduled to test during the month of May. Members of the Class of 2024 who are taking Biology Honors this year will test the first week of June. (Term 1& 3 Honors Bio students who want to review in have been provided with the link to an MCAS Review website.  It is posted in their Google classroom and/or the class webpage.)

Club news:

The Environmental Action Club is offering free River Birch trees to residents of Ashland.  We will be planting these trees over April vacation.  If interested, please send an email to nduffy@ashland.k12.ma.us for further details.

April 9, 2021

Good afternoon-

Hard to believe we have reached the end of term 3! Grades closed today and students start their new Term 4 schedules on Monday. Please make sure your student checks their schedule this weekend to make sure they understand where to go Monday morning. We will have counselors and support staff at all of the entrances to help direct them as well!

It is so exciting to think that on Monday we will be welcoming almost all of our AHS students back to the school together. This has been a long and challenging year and I am so grateful for the tireless work of our teachers and staff to create a safe environment for our students to learn. We are beyond excited to welcome them back, while we also continue to be concerned about the health and safety for our community. At AHS we consider is a team effort of everyone in the building since our students are young adults. 

As parents, I ask that you continue to encourage your student to abide but current COVID guidance. I understand the COVID fatigue all of our students are feeling but it is a team effort to keep the community safe. 

Here are some reminders and suggestions for all students:

1. Masks must be worn at ALL times in the building with the exception of lunch. Students may remove their mask when seated and eating. 

2. Chromebooks and chargers should continue to come to school each day. 

3. Students are encouraged to bring a water bottle. Bottles with spouts or a straw are helpful to be able to drink water while in class. 

We will have class meetings as well as an all-school (within individual classrooms) activity on Monday to help remind students of expectations while also building relationships and school culture.

As a reminder Ashland High School will be conducting an anonymous survey of our students in grades 9-11, called the Developmental Relationships Survey from Search Institute. This survey includes 3 core modules that measure Developmental Relationships, Social Emotional Learning, and Equity. Please review the attached letter from Jennifer Cutler, our Director of Social Emotional Learning, for more information about the survey. 

Have a wonderful weekend!

March 26, 2021

Good afternoon-

It was so nice to enjoy the nice weather with lunch outside this week and lots of chatter about the full return of students. We are so excited to welcome everyone back but we are also working to remind students that our COVID expectations remain in place. Please continue to enforce with your student that masks and social distancing are expectations when in school. 

Tips for Managing Emotions During Times of Transition

https://www.smore.com/95tmw

MCAS updates

While there has been a push across the Commonwealth to hold of on MCAS this year, at this time we are planning as if it will occur.

Currently, all members of the Class of 2022 and 2023 will test in English and Math, most likely in the middle of May. The science assessment for these students has been waived as a graduation requirement. Any member of the Class of 2024 currently taking Biology will take the Biology assessment in June. 

We will share more specific details as they become available. 

Financial Reality Fair

The Student Council is looking for a few more parent volunteers to help out at our Financial Reality 

Fair for seniors, to be held on Friday, May 28th (from 7:45am - 2pm.)  Students will receive a 

paycheck and work their way through various booths to figure out a plan for housing, transportation, 

food, etc. while staying within their budget.  We are looking for a few more volunteers to help staff the 

booths.  For more information and to register to volunteer, please go to: 

https://sites.google.com/ashland.k12.ma.us/stucoashland/major-events-2020/reality-fair    

Any questions?  Contact Kaitlin Merson, Student Council President (MersonKai@ashland.k12.ma.us) 

or Josh Wiczer, Student Council Advisor (jwiczer@ashland.k12.ma.us)

Clocker Club news: The 2020-2021 school year has seen its challenges, it has been a tough year, and 

we are ready for some fun! Please join us for our Spring Clocker Club Golf Tournament! Your support 

will help us offset the fundraising opportunities we were not able to offer over the past year or so due to 

COVID.

The Tournament will be held at the Blackstone National Golf Club in Sutton on Thursday, May 20 

with check-in at 9am. Visit the registration page to register as an individual, a foursome, or select 

any of our sponsorship opportunities to help support our athletic programs. Following golf, a 

luncheon will follow with awards and business sponsorship recognition.

We're also looking for day-of-event volunteers to keep the Tournament running smoothly. If 

you're interested, please send us a message from the Contact Us page of the registration site.

The Clocker Club is dedicated to the support and advancement of all the athletic programs at 

Ashland High School and Middle School by promoting the purpose, pride, and performance of 

all student-athletes. We provide support through financial and volunteer assistance to the 

athletic programs, coaches, and student-athletes. 

Green Up Ashland

Attachments area

March 19, 2021

Good afternoon-

We are excited to welcome all students back to the building on Monday, April 12. Below is the Google slides presentation from the full in person webinar held on Tuesday, March 16:

AHS Back to Full in person learning

You can also find a copy of the webinar on the AHS webpage.

AHS COVID pool testing is starting on Monday morning. Thank you to all of the families who elected to have their students tested. Testing will occur in the classroom next door to the nurse's office. Students in cohort A who are being tested received an email today with information (cohort B will receive their email early next week). If you signed your student up for testing please remind them to go to the nurse's office as soon as they arrive in school or when they are called down by grade. If you are have questions about pool testing please consider attending the Superintendent's webinar on Monday, March 22nd. 

Over the course of the past week we have dealt with a few issues of hate speech that have been upsetting to some members of our school community. I have attached the letter sent to the student body here: AHS incidents  Please don't hesitate to ask if you have questions.

Clocker Idol:

The Student Council is excited to be presenting Season Seven of "The Clocker Idol" to the Ashland Community!  Join us on Wednesday, March 24th at 7pm either tuning in on WACA-TV, YouTube, or Facebook.  Our contestants this year are: Annalyn Blanchard, Sarah Chappelle, Justin Galang, Katarina Gertje, Brady McGuire, Nathan Noel, Priscilla Oluokun, and Emma Pawl.  For more information, and to check out our promotional videos, check out our website at: https://sites.google.com/ashland.k12.ma.us/stucoashland/major-events-2020/clocker-idol

March 14, 2021

It's hard to believe one year ago on March 12 we dismissed school early and did not return for the remainder of the school year. It is exciting to be planning for the full in-person return for Term 4. Please take a moment to review the emails from the Superintendent sent this weekend.

I will host a webinar to discuss plans and answer questions on Tuesday, March 16 at 7pm. Superintendent Adams sent the registration in a previous email. 

Have a wonderful week and please enjoy the latest addition of the Union St Journal- February edition.

March 5, 2021

 Good afternoon-

A reminder that iParent access to course recommendation approval will close later today. Please check your student's course requests and submit your approval ASAP. Thank you!

A friendly reminder for grade 10 families from the school nurses:

As noted in a letter we sent home in December, Massachusetts state law mandates that every 10th grade student has a recent physical exam on file in the school health office. An exam done after 9/1/2019 will meet the requirement. As of today, we are still missing exam forms for a large number of students! 

If your child had a physical exam on or after 9/1/2019, please forward a copy of the exam form to our office as soon as possible. If your child has not had an exam recently, please arrange to have this done now. Documentation can be sent to the health office via mail, fax (508-881-0187), or email (AHS_Nurses@ashland.k12.ma.us).

Kindly note that students without this documentation will not be allowed to begin 11th grade classes in the fall. Thank you!

Feeling thirsty? Come join the NHS for our Ashland Nutrition fundraiser this weekend! Located at 61 Pond Street in Ashland, there is a great variety of refreshing teas and smoothies to try, especially all the fun candy flavors! With every purchase made from Saturday, March 6 to Sunday, March 7 with the mention of "Ashland NHS," there will be a donation made to ACLU MA. Come support!

News from Student Council
Clocker Idol:

The Student Council is excited to be presenting Season Seven of "The Clocker Idol" to the Ashland Community!  Join us on Wednesday, March 17th at 7pm either tuning in on WACA-TV, YouTube, or Facebook.  Our contestants this year are: Annalyn Blanchard, Sarah Chappelle, Justin Galang, Katarina Gertje, Brady McGuire, Nathan Noel, Priscilla Oluokun, and Emma Pawl.  For more information, and to check out our promotional videos, check out our website at: https://sites.google.com/ashland.k12.ma.us/stucoashland/major-events-2020/clocker-idol

Financial Reality Fair

The AHS Student Council is working to put together our second annual "Financial Reality Fair" for the graduating seniors.  This event will be held on Friday, May 28th in-person at the high school, with all participants wearing masks and Covid-precautions followed.

Each senior will receive a paycheck and credit score and will need to navigate various booths where they will have to make financial decisions (renting an apartment, getting a car, getting insurance, etc.)  The event in 2019 was a huge success -- 92% of the students who participated in the event and completed the post-event survey said that they found the fair very informative and that they learned something that they will use in their lives.  

To run this event successfully we need help from the community.  We are looking for professionals who can work with the students to help them make financial decisions and help guide them along the way.  Specifically, we are looking for anyone with a background in housing (realtors), furniture, food, insurance (renter's insurance and auto insurance), clothing, transportation, charity/community service, education (paying for college), luxuries (vacation, entertainment, pets), utilities (internet / phone / cable / gas / electricity), personal savings, retirement savings, or budgeting.  In addition, we are also looking for anyone who is willing to help out as a "general volunteer."  These "general volunteers" will be trained by the professionals at their booth and will then be able to engage in financial conversations with students, helping them make decisions.

For more information (including a video from the 2019 event and photos and to sign-up to volunteer, visit our website at: https://sites.google.com/ashland.k12.ma.us/stucoashland/major-events-2020/reality-fair

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Kaitlin Merson at MersonKai@ashland.k12.ma.us (Student Council President) or Josh Wiczer at jwiczer@ashland.k12.ma.us (Student Council Advisor).